Motor-vehicle.



u A. o. HIGINBOIHAM.

MOTOR VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED IIuG.8. 19M.

' l,196,864. Patentedsepm, 1916.

' connecting ARTHUR O. HIGINBOTHAM, OF WOIIt-CIES'LEIR',- MASSACHUSETTS,SSIGNOR T0 CHARLES B. FOSTER AND COMPANY, A. COPARTNERSHIP OF WORCESTER,MASSACHUSETTS,

CONSISTING OE CHARLES IB. FOSTER, ARTHUR GEORGE.

0. HIGINBOTHAM, AND JEROME R,

MOTOR-VEHICLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

` rae-.interi sept. 5, raie.

Application filed August 8, 1914.'l Serial No. 855,841.

To all wwm t may concern;

, Be it known that I, ARTHUR O. Hiem- BOTHAM, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Worcester, in the county of Worcester andCommonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Motor-Vehicles,of which the following, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawing, is a specification. l

The present invention relates to motor vehicles, and in particular tomeans for transmitting the power from the prime mover to the drivingwheels of such vehicles. Y

The obvious advantages to be obtained by relieving the powertransmission means of `the weight of the vehicle, particularly in lheavytruck or commercial vehiclepractice,

has resulted in various constructions for supportingv said drivingwheels independently of the rotating power shaft, and for the latter tosaid wheels by means ofY chains, o`r the like. It has also beenproposed, heretofore, to secure to each rear or driving wheel a gear,and to pro-' vide an intermeshing pinion on the end ofa power shaft forimparting rotation to said Wheel and gear. By the above construction, itis possible to journal the wheels on the ends of a dead axle, whichlatter carries the lentireweight of the vehicle.; and the driving gearis thus entirely `relieved` of the, weight ofthe vehicle, and is notsubjected to the usual shocks and strains incidental to the passage ofthe drive wheels over rough roads. However, it has been found diiiicultheretofore to maintain the coperating teeth of the said gear and drivingpinion in perfect mesh and alinement, owing to the prevailing methods ofsecuring said gear, usually an internal gear, to the wheel, whereby anydistortion of said wheel has been communicated to said gear to 'renderthe latter incapable of meshing properly and perfectly with said pinion.Furthermore, great diiiiculty has been lexperienced in providing for theeicient lubrication of said gear and pinion, and in preventing theaccess of dust and dirt thereto.

The present invention contemplates the elimination ofV the above.described disadvantages by the construction particularly pointed outinthe following description and the claims annexed thereto, referencebeing which operates to had to the accompanying drawing, in which thefigure represents a transverse sectional view of a motor vehicledrivewheel embodying my invention.

In said figure the numeral l is used to designate` a f' rear deadaxle,extending transversely of the vehicle and serving for thesupport of thesame through the usual springs, not shown. Only one end of said axle isshown in the drawing, since the construction and arrangement of parts ateach end thereof is identical. Atv each end said axle has rotatablyjournaled thereon, in the manner hereinafter described, a driving wheel2, said wheels serving for the support of said axle above the roadsurface. Adjacent each wheel said axle has keyed thereon thehub 3 of aspider 4, said hub en aging at. its inner end a shoulder 5 on sai axle,-whereby inward movement of said spider on said axle is prevented. Thetwo spiders 4f, carried by said axle near opposite ends thereof, serve.for the support of a casing 6 which incloses the so-called differentialgearing of the vehicle, and which 'carries the jack shafts, operatedthrough said gearing, ordinarily employed to impart rotation to thedriving wheels. An end only of said casing 6 is shown; said end entersand is supported 'by a hollow boss 7 formed on the inner face of saidspider forwardlyof the axle l and in substantially the same horizontalplane as saidaxle. Each boss 7 opens intoa recess .8 formed on the outerface of the vspider Il,

abutment for the inner raceway of said balll bearing. The outer racewayof said bearing seats in the bottom of the recess 8 and is held fromoutward movement by a retaining ring l2 secured in the outer face of thespider. A pinion 13 is keyed on the end of said shaft, and between theinner end of said pinion and the 4inner raceway of said ball bearing 9-the shaft 10 is surrounded loosely by a ring 14 having a running fitwithin the opening through the retaining ring l2, and inclosing a spiralspring 15 yieldingly maintain said inner raceway of the ball bearingagainst the shoulder 11 of. the shaft. The pinion 13 is held on saidshaft by a'nut 16 carried on the reduced outerend of the shaft.

The wheel 2, above referred to, comprises When the wheel thus equippedis placed on the axle 1, the inner raceway of bearing 20 -ing faces ofsaid members to provide for bears against the .outer end of hub 3 and isheld against outward movement by a spacer 23 fitted upon the taperedouter end of the axle, and held stationary by the inner raceway of asecond antifriction bearing 24 which fills the space between the outerends of the hub 17 and axle 1, and is held on the latter by a nut 25,carried onsaid axle.

The open end of hub 17 is closed by a dust cap 26 secured thereto andhaving a valve controlled opening therethrough for the introduction oflubricant. l

The hub 17, at a section thereof inwardly of the junction of the webs orspokes 18 therewith, constituting the bridge, or point of greatestdiameter of said hub, has an annular web or flange 27, against the innerface of which is secured, by an annular selries of bolts 28, an annularplate 29 having an inturned rim 30 -extending nearly to th'e outer faceof the spider 4. The registeringholes in the flange 27 and plate 29 forthe bolts'28 are counterbored on the opposcollars 31 surrounding saidbolts and serving, by reason of their greaterA diameter, to offer agreater resistance to the sheer on said bolts, in the well known manner.The outer face ofspider 4 has an outwardly extending annular flange 32surrounding the rim 30 and spaced slightly therefrom, the outer` edge ofsaid flange 32 having securedthereto, by an annular series of bolts 33,an

annular plate 34 disposed outwardly of the plate 29 and surrounding andhaving arunning fit with the periphery of flange'ior web 27. -Theinterior of rim 3() is formed with teeth 35 constituting an internalgear in mesh with the teeth of pinion 13, and providing for 'the drivingof the wh eel 2 by the rotation' of said pinion.

It will be seen that the pinion 13 and the internal gear 35 arecontained within a. closed annular chamber, having its ends formed bythe spider 4 and the plate 34, its

- inner wall formed by the periphery of hub 1-7 and its `outer wallformed by the flange 32 of spider 4. VThe only exterior running jointthrough which it is pp-ssible for dust or dirt to enter this chamber isthe joint-between the plate 34 and the web or flange 27 of the hub, andin. order to effectually close .3 and between rings 12 and 14 are s 4ingany mud or water through stead of from the rim, or frcmvt fthe spokes,has no effect on 'the gear 'the latter is not supported by said ternalgear 35 and the pinion 13 alwa` tion of lubricantv through the dust capvnal gear 35 and pinion 13 and assists message this joint against theentrance el matter, annular strips of packing r 36 are embedded in thatedge of salu with which the fiange v27 maires c The running ointsbetween ring 22 provided with packing material, at 37, 37

The above described chamber i the internal gear and its driving L' norunning joints on its inner face; aA single joint on its outer face isma as possible to the center of the wi move itfrom the possibility ofwheel might pass. The dierent 6, as shown, opens into the said andlubricant from said casing, through the bearing 9 has access chamber bypassing 'through the joint betweenv the rings 12 and 14. son of theconstruction of said cha above described, no lubricant can escapetherefrom until the level cf bricant therein .rises to the running jointbetween the p hub, and thus an adequate suppl cant is always insured.

The supporting of the interna directlyfrom the hub 17 ef t1 e as in theusual practice, insures e acrcurate meshing of the teeth s; with theteeth ofpinion 13, so lere hub runs true `on 'the axle 1. rihe d ofthewheel, by springing of the said spokes: Furthermore, by reas^ suspension,of the casing 6, conte' driving gear, from the rigid spidr all as setforth and described in m ing application Serial No. 855 August 6, 1914,for a motor vehicle, be seen that the relative positions of main thesame irrespective of the p which the rear wheels assume'relative te theframe of the vehicle.

The lubrication of the bearings 20 ana @fl :1 1s of the wheel hul) iseffected by the intro the usual manner. When the lubricant introducedinto the interior-of the hu rises above the height of the running jbetween ring 22 and hub 3, it overfior' the annular chamber containing'the lubrication of said parts,

1. In a m'otor vehicle, a dead axle,a wl journaled for rotation thereon,inte gear carried by the hub of said housing inclosing said gear and bysaid axle, said housing" rality of' running joints with said hub,whereby to maintain a supply of lubricant therein at all times above thelowest point of said gear7 a driving shaft, parallel to said axle,entering said housing and a pinion on said`shaft in mesh with the teeth'of said gear.

2. In amotor Vehicle, a dead axle, a Wheel journaled for rotationthereon., an internal gear carried by the hub of said Wheel, anddisposed inwardly 'of the tread' of said Wheel, a housing inclosing saidgear, said housing comprising an inner plate carried by said axle andhaving a running joint with said hub, and an outer platesecured to 15Dated this thirtieth day of July, 1914. ARTHUR O. HIGINBO'llllldllf.

' Witnesse's PENEnorE COMBERBAGH, p NELLIE WHALEN.

